BY DAN VALENTI

PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY

(FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THE WEEKEND EDITION, MAY 18-20, 2018) — You take the high road, and we’ll take the low. But what ‘ere ye do, lad and lass, make sure those roads dunna go through Pittsfield — Old Scottish Proverb.

THE PLANET has heard TONS of reports, feedback, and intelligence by abroad cross section of drivers testifying to the deplorable condition of city roads, streets, highways, byways, and cow paths. We of course have done ample first hand research, investigation, and exploration, primarily when we find ourselves in the midst of the unhappy prospect of driving these shady lanes in the Planetmobile.

THE PLANET hears you, Mary Jane and Joe Kapanski. Alone among Berkshire County media, we hear you AND, unlike The Boring Broadsheet, allow you the opportunity to have your say. The BB, as you well know, has for a year now stifled you from commenting on their posts. We don’t and won’t do that. THE PLANET stands for free speech, and we give you the privilege of having your say.

So tell us about the roads, mistimed traffic signals, confusing signs, potholes, fissures, faded paint lines, unmarked crosswalks, and all the rest of it. You can be sure that the “leaders” of the city — to a man, to a woman, and to everything in between — rank among THE PLANET‘s most loyal and careful readers. They can tell you what’s wrong with each issue!

So give ’em what for on the highway and road stuff.

That’s what we’re doing in this, The Weekend Edition. We invite you to let go with both barrels with your views of Pittsfield roads and the people responsible. Feel free to go off topic, of course, but we particularly solicit comments on your road experiences while traveling in and through this once thriving burg now dying a slow death because of executive neglect, administrative dysfunction, and Special Interest corruption.

Have a great weekend, everybody.

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“When your the little guy in a fight, all you gotta do is be right … And keep a com in’ — Davy Crockett.

87 Responses to “DRIVING PITTSFIELD … or … THE ROAD(S) TO NOWHERE”

What did we pay $300,000.00 for the bagler pot hole machine rust bucket. That was a huge cash grab. New school buses with now busted tie rods smashing into pot holes. What a bargin there. Still paying for the old buses? Is it time to repave the runway at the airport again? I think it is. That needs to be smooth as glass. Pittsfield residents will not tolerate potholes on their runways.

Teachers need raises. We need to revamp the garbage pickup. We need cleaner water for WalMart to sell. As for the roads, let them eat cake.

I bet if you drive from Mayor Tyer’s home to City Hall, the roads are just fine for that drive.

Could we see all road repair policies, guidelines and emails going back 15 years please? Can we see the names of those who were in charge of road repairs for this time period? And can we see the names of anyone who may have altered, interfered or gerrymandered road repair needs?

In a nutshell, who are the people responsible for the deplorable conditions of Pittsfield roads? It did not happen overnight. If money has been appropriated and diverted for special interest projects who is responsible?

Strangely some of the roads off Ann Drive are and have been horrible and those homes value a quarter million and more. Who is the councilor there and why has he not been on this?

First Street heading south to turn right on to maplewood headed toward the Lanturn.There is no money for basic maintaince of roads because the School Department Wags this Mayor and City Council.
Taxpayers want roads swept,potholes fixed,lines painted before May is out.Work night and day to get it done.Departments are afraid to budget for real work in the city.Department are always at the mercy of Jason Mccandless and his too bid school department…..Consolidate like everyone else

Because of the size of the schools other departments suffer as they only low ball budget.The trades people in this cityare completely underpaid.we want consolidation for a better school department.
Stop Joe Curtis from trolling the internet to find cool software to buy or laptops to fix and replace.
Just have teachers teach on paper with pen and pencil that transfers very well to future technology.Get out in the buildings and make sure your lazy principles are walking their buildings all day with their assistants….teach and stop the tech nonsense. This will allow rods to be swept,potholes filled,roads painted and its all a safety problem if not done.Clean Belanger fields bathrooms everyday,scrub the walls and paint.Check every day.Policy on who counts cash in the schools and make sure those that deal in profits in schools hands it it to the citys general fund…..follow the cash in the PTOs and school stores and staff lounge stores.

ALLENDALE school is built on a toxic chemical swamp.Pittsfield school department does not care that students are breathing the air inside this chemical swamp .The Pittsfield school Superintendant should post air quality statements evertday at Allendale school.They are available and lets get Curtis posting them.PCBs are a known cause of learning disabilities in children.

3RD Thursday is MAYHEM and needs to be cancelled
Berk Gas raising rates to keep pace with Mayor Tyers RE Tax increases, basically passing onto consumer (secondary effect of taxation usually get lost on the morons in City Hall) and finally
I hear that even the local little league is on the verge of collapse – what a place !!

Nothing will change unless 6 councilors tell the mayor, whoever the mayor is, they will not vote for any budget that is not reduced by 1% from the previous year’s budget.
The council review is always fun to watch! Not fun to do but it is high comedy.

But at minimum, 6 councilors are a package deal with any given mayor. They walk and talk in lockstep. These councilors were told not to rock the boat when they were backed by the machine and they dare not. Throw in a couple of more and the taxpayers are helpless.

Chuck has it right the council will be a dog and pony show,last year when Mccandless was wagging the City council Marchetti promised Mccandless that this years school budget will get Mccandless a dirty look.
Anyone ever notice how all the learning disabled and SPED kids are housed in the worst buildings.
SWEEP the streets,fix potholes around the clock till its done.Paint the lines in the roads and for gods sake the are Senior Citizens trying to physically rehab themselves at Belanger track because parking is convenient and the bathrooms are there.Clean those bathrooms every morning for the Older people who rehab there and want a clean enviroment….maybe Caccamo and Tyer and Marchetti can get these clean at 7am every day for them.

Councilors struggle to cut the budget, just listen to their arguments, they know they don’t have the votes for cuts off any kind. Polesemy at it’s best when Councilor Mazzeo states it’s a bare bones budget?

What does that mean? The Mayor gets credit for very little tax increase? Or does it mean something else? It is not a bare bones Budget. A bare bones budget leaves no room for any tax relief. a bare bones budget means we, the taxpayer,are against any added funding, and still doesn’t cut it.

A bare bones budget is what Chuck V has stated, tell the City Council and cut one percent. Then you can call it a bare bones budget.

Did I hear the Mayor say the City is looking to improve our homes value? Did I also hear gopher say the Market is up for homes between 150 to 250 thousand?

The trick is to sell you house at close to its value and get out.
The tricky part is getting some sucker to buy it who is willing to put up with Pittsfield’s sky high taxes and fees and stupidness. More and more people are not willing to.

Either way, the city doesn’t care because don’t pay your taxes and they take your house. So, you don’t really own it anyway.

You are so right. If you stay in Pittsfield the current tax rate combined with fees, and celestial looming increases are going to make sure you and your family NEVER go on vacation, to college or be able to save for the better things in life that this mayor enjoys every day.

One of the most important and vital things a homeowner in Pittsfield can do right now today is to evaluate the current tax burden on their income and then see how it works when it is almost double in the next couple of years. You may find that you will be clawing to hang on to your home, working 2 or 3 jobs and sadly denying your children things they may need or like to have. This is not hyperbole. Explore your options and do it like your future depends on it, because it does.

It is amazing how people not getting paycheck from taxes get suckered into supporting more government spending, it amounts to a loss of hundreds of thousands that they could have saved for education, healthcare, and retirement. After the taxes impoverish them they look to government will give them these things for “free,” but you don’t get your money back from a scam

Cut the City Council off, have a full time Manager. The Schools eat up the budget and never cut, always add, so giveaways like Beacon and Covanta are not viable. Giving tifs and money for capital improvements and our roads are crap? Why pay taxes?

There is not 1 councilor who feels they can cut 1 dollar from schools.Dog and pony for voters other than Ward 3 and 4.Mayor Tyer as all the councilors tax according to these two wards,if they can afford it so can you.Pittsfield is going into poverty and a few neighborhood dictate what impoverished people can afford.The mayor and the council are elitist.

Does anyone know the exact date the last special interest project was declined?

And now that the museum is swimming in money should they not pay some in lieu of tax money back to the city for all it has done for them? I mean before it disappears into friendly contractor hands with kickbacks, graft and collusion?

Send ried and herbertg to Pittsfield high,send morningside and allendale to reid,send crosby and conte to herberg go back to grades 10,11,12 at Taconic……just closed the 4 worst buildings in Pittsfield and saved the high school

I spoke to Mr. Gaetanithis Morning. Latest…
Anyone who know me, knows that I do not sugar coat anything, nor do I lick anyone’s boots.

For two and a half years I have been appearing before the C C trying to tell them that the proposals at the sewer and water Plants are preposterous. I have pointed out, to e and time again that the City’s D P W Commissioner Turdocy must be replaced because he deosn’t even have basic knowledge regarding the water and sewer projects. The City’s three consulting engineering firms, love to have a person like Turdocy on Board because they can and have pull the wool over his head, time and time again.

When a person is seriously ill, they seek out the best experts to survive. Persip, rather than asking G any questions regarding the sewer project, instead asked a Ity Employee,operator, which technology is best for the City.

This is indicative of themind set of the eight idiot Councilors and the Mayor, who could not find their way out of a room with a thousand doors.

I know positively that the price tag of these two proposals can be reduced by fifty percent for each project.

Did Turocy or Secretary Tyer or any of the City Councilors try to bargain with the City Consultants? I am certain that the Consultants didn’t here anything from these individuals, and the tax and rate payers will pay dearly for their incompetence.

Whenever I buy something expensive I research the project then go I to bargaining mode, most times I can negotiate a savings of 20- 50 percent

Continued….being a very successful bargainer of a one hundred fifty million dollars water project in the eighties and reduced it to thirty two million Including Infrastructure updates and new storage tanks throughout the city and a hydro turbine that supplies much of the electricity at the Ashley Plant.

Now, back to these incompetent eight. They all possess the same trait of cowardice. They were elected to do the best they can for the taxpayer? Seldom have I ever heard any of these eight ask Intelligent questions a topic.

I seriously doubt that they have a grasp on what the cost of what these two projects will have on water and sewer rates?

As an example, a single family home which has a present water-sewer bill of one hundred a quarter or four hundred a year will rise to eight hundred a quarter or thirty two hundred a year.

An owner of a five family unit, each with the scenario above who presently pays two thousand dollars a years will rise to close to eighteen thousand dollars a year.

The general pubic at present is not aware what is coming, but when it comes it will be to late and many will be forced to sell or give away their homes, because water and sewer rates will exceed property taxes, this is the reality that everyone will face. To be continued soon…………

Yes,We need to be progressive.business is the most progressive organization.Education is progressice and so is the military and colleges are progressive,farmer are very progressive…..progress is good Pat .You relate progress to evil.Move forward Pat .Dont go back.America was never at a period that was great.What makes America great is progress.

The Progressive agenda has nothing to do with progress for our society as we see in Pittsfield. Progressives are progressively destroying the city. We are not going forward into prosperity for all, but are seeing the formation of two income groups….the very rich and the very poor. We have more poor people than ever and more rich people than ever. A large majority of these super rich happen to be Progressives.

On May 20, 1998, when I was only 22 years old, Nuciforo made secretive plans with the Pittsfield Police Department to have me arrested under his false complaint that I made veiled threats against him, and that if I stopped by his downtown Pittsfield legislative office, the police would be called and I would be arrested. Nuciforo did not tell my dad or anyone else about his secretive plans to jail me. Prior to Nuciforo trying to jail me, he filed multiple “ethics” complaints against my dad from the Fall of 1997 – Spring of 1998. Prior to Nuciforo’s “ethics” charges against my dad, Nuciforo had people bully me since the Spring of 1996, including a then BCC environmental science professor who lived in Becket who threatened to physically assault me, while he would viciously point his finger at me and verbally abuse and verbally assault me with insult after insult. Indeed, Nuciforo had many people bully me on his behalf without him leaving behind his own fingerprints. Then, in the Summer of 2005, possibly Denis E. Guyer spread vicious rumors against me to the people of the Pittsfield area that all I ever did was “stalk a Jewish woman from Otis” and that my mental health or mental illness was a result of my love for a Jewish woman. The woman possibly Denis E. Guyer referred to was the BCC Becket man’s adult daughter who I worked with during the Summer of 1996 when I was 20 and then 21 years old. Possibly Denis E. Guyer did not tell the people that this woman was married during the Summer of 2002.

Nuciforo is Pittsfield’s inbred political prince whose late-father was a State Senator and then a Judge, his late-Aunt was Pittsfield’s first woman Mayor and longtime BCC professor, and his uncle was a Pittsfield State Representative. Nuciforo is one of the top “Good Old Boys” who run Pittsfield politics. He hurts people like me, my dad, and others, and there is nothing anyone can do about it because he is so powerful in Pittsfield. The G.O.B. runs the show in Pittsfield politics by fear and retaliations against anyone who speaks out against their hegemonic powers that rival an authoritarian country like Russia or China. All these years later, Nuciforo got to be the first medical marijuana and soon to be retail marijuana dispensary in Pittsfield. It is no wonder how Nuciforo got first dibs on selling marijuana in Pittsfield! In fact, it all fits and make sense to me!

Gaetani’s t v show gets better each week.This decorated Viet Vet,highly educated and very accomplished corporate executive, is a breath a fresh air in the political scene, even though he is not a politician. I only watch the City Council meetings to see what Mr. G. has to say.

Fairness is the only thing the G Man seeks for all City rate and taxpayers. We should be all be very appreciative that Gaetani is on our side. There is. O o e else li,e the G Man here in Pittsfield. he can p.ay I. Anyones’s ballpark and teach them a lesson about their own Park.

I would love to see a one in City Government try to debate the G Man on any topic. It would be like I’ve said in the past- Gaetani would be the bow of an Aircraft Carrier, and any City Official would be a piece of popcorn.

Gaetani’s last Show for 5-16 18 is must see T V to see what will happen to your water and sewer rates. These new rates will scare even the bravest of souls.

I don’t understand why Rinaldo Del Gallo III and Alan Chartock have been feuding with each other as far back as 2005 through present 2018. I admire both men in politics. However, I was frustrated with Rinaldo for defending free speech event that included neo nazi or other hate speakers. How could Rinaldo not denounce hate speech? Rinaldo never responded to my emails about free speech that includes hate speech! Also, I was frustrated with Alan for his consistent praises for Nuciforo over the years. Alan wrote that Nuciforo is a good guy and communicator in politics, despite the fact that I have pointed out how corrupt he is with his political power in state and local politics. Hypocritically, Alan is negative on Rinaldo’s politics, but he never once criticized Nuciforo!

I admire Rinaldo because he wants to help people, believes in Bernie Sanders’ progressive values, and speaks out for the benefit of the community. I admire Alan because he shares my strong belief in Human Rights, advocates for mental health, and runs a progressive public radio station out of Albany, NY. I have talked with both men, and I am always impressed with their participation in politics.

Just saw another show on Fox News highlighting Lenco’s armored vehicle made in Pittsfield. Fox championed the entrepreneurial success and expansion of the business while the guests with the D lamented how the police districts that are buying these vehicles are making their communities fearful of a police state mentality. If this topic actually gets attention it will be interesting where the politicians in Pittsfield stand. TIF for the expansion? Good for Pittsfield, bad for the D. My guess… Lenco wouldn’t even ask, they would do it on their own.

Then what is he defending?Why is it necessary to fire people over an investigation that will find he did no wrong.What does Trump know about Trump that you do not.He behaves guilty.He was demanding Obama step down as president.He is demanding Clinton be locked up and all of this without an investigation.

Because the investigation has turned into a fishing expedition to try to find anything on President Trump no matter how unrelated to the original Russia collusion investigation. That is wrong and most Americans agree that this is wrong. There was an investigation of Hillary and she should have been convicted, but was let off the hook due to James Comey and others who protected her.

It is Hillary and Bills fault as well as Obamas. I saw on the television where the pope blessed all the Trump people and told them they would be going to the front of the line for heaven. Anybody who disrespects Trump is disrespecting God as they are one and the same and working very hard together to make america great again and again. Blessed be Donald Thump.

Who told you anything about the Mueller investigation,Trump could very well be exonerated by this.You are being informed otherwise by Trump.what is Mueller fishing for?and why would this man a respected military man and FBI leader of both parties not want to get to the bottom of Russian influence inside our elections and that colusion or not does not have to mean Trump did anything wrong.From another point of view he is preteaching you how to respond to the findings at a later date a Pavlov response will be in your future